Mr Doherty explained that Boko Haram has a literal translation of the prohibition of Western education, and how its leader has a belief that the captured girls are spoils of war, with whom he can have sex.

Doherty believes that the girls have been split up into smaller groups, making a recovery process more difficult.

He quoted fellow Forum member from Kaduna, Pastor James Wuye, who said that once someone is indoctrinated with the values of hate, it takes time to decommission that mindset. Consequently, the larger issue of the hold that Boko Haram has in parts of Nigeria will take much longer than people presume: